ROCKFORD — Sounds of gospel, hip-hop, spoken-word poetry and other performances filled the Sinnissippi Music Shell on Thursday to celebrate the anniversary of the end of slavery in America.

For 24 years, Tommy Meeks has organized the annual festivities to commemorate Juneteenth.

Juneteenth commemorates the day — June 19, 1865 — when Union soldiers landed at Galveston, Texas, to declare the Civil War ended and all slaves free. The Confederacy didn’t comply with the Emancipation Proclamation — signed 2½ years earlier by President Abraham Lincoln — until the soldiers arrived to enforce the order.

Juneteenth, a combination of “June” and “19th,” is the oldest national celebration of the end of slavery in the United States.

“I honestly feel we owe a debt to our ancestors to be the best citizens, the best parents, the best people that we could be in honor of them,” Meeks said.

“It’s been my belief, going on 24 years, that people who pay attention to history do better because they know where they come from.”

Meeks strives to have entertainers, speakers and attendees reflect the community’s diversity.

“Juneteenth is not just for African-Americans. There are a lot of white people who lost their lives in the Civil War,” he said. “It’s not just for African-Americans, it’s for the whole country.”

Juneteenth can conjure up painful memories for some, but its an important recognition of how far the nation has come, said Lloyd Johnston, president of the local chapter of the NAACP.

“If we’re going to truly transform as a nation, we have to embrace every little page of our past because it’s American history,” he said.

“If you change anything, we wouldn’t be the nation we are today: A resilient people who can withstand any challenge.”